Apparatus for turning containers



June 15, 194s. H, D, SMWH 2,443,202

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Il "EN June 15, 1948.

l APPARATUS FOR TURNING CONTAINERS Filed Jam.l 13, 1944 2 sheets-sheet 2 Q @fgf 7 7 4; f uw e 7 "WIWI/Ill "'"WHHHIJ H. D. SMITH 2,443,202 n Patented June 15, 1948 APPARATUSFQR TURNING CONTAINERS Hugh D: Smith, UnitedfStates Army',

Richmond, Va.

Application January 13, 1944,.'Se1'ia1 Noi. 518,085?

(Cl. 259-4515)y (Granted under the: act of March 3, 1883, as-

amendEdApDil-30`r1928; 370' O. G. 757) The invention described herein.. if patentedt may be manufactured! and, used by or fos' the: Government for governmental purposes, without the paymentto` me oi any royalty thereon..

This: iinfentionI relates to2 an apparatus; for handling goods in case lots..

Alurther object of the invention is tol provide anapparatus adapted to bev used partcularly in= warehouses for turning a. plurality of: cases: con taining foods which require periodical turning, such as evaporated milk.

Referring tothe drawings z' Fig. 1= is a perspective View of a plurality of cases. stackedy oni a. pallet.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a plurality cases: stacked on a pallet with a. second pallet on topv of the uppermost casca.

Fig. 9v is' a perspective View of a loaded pellet, showing the securing mea-ns; ap'plifed for holding the upperrand lower pallets: together;

Fig'. l is a perspective Viewv of aloaded' pallet raised from its supporting surface and? encircled by a pair of slings;

Fig. .'i'vis-` a perspective View oi a loaded pali'et iinl tilted position.

Fig. 6; is av'ertical sectionalview'ofa; loadedlpal-L let.

Fig. 7 is a top plan View partly brok-en: awayoiT a loaded pallet.

`ln the storage of evaporated vmilk it h-as been found that the milk will lose its flavor unless it is. subjected to periodical turning, the reasony be ing that the solid matter, whichcomprisesfz percent of the milk the other 76 percentbeing Water, settles to the bottom of' the container unless the container is turned periodically?. The usualprac-y tice followed. in warehouses. is: to.I manually turni separately each. individual casel containing. the1 containersc milk.. Thisisnotonly a costly pro,-v cedure due to the fact that. it. is necessaryl to. ernploy a considerable force of men to handle the cases, but it involves a great deal of time, particularly When a large quantity of cases are being stored.

Referring to Fig. l., in practicing the present invention a plurality of cases l packed with food such as containers of evaporated milk which must be turned periodically, are stacked upon a pallet 2 of the type customarily used in warehouses. After the desired number of cases which are to be turned are stacked on the pallet 2, a second pallet 3, as shown in Fig. 2, is 'placed on top of the uppermost cases. Elongated plates 4, usually four in number, having their ends preferably formed with prong-like elements are inserted into the ilt open; ends; of the pall-ets; 2 andan I-m orderl that the. pallets may betied: or drawn together, rods 63,. provided with threaded ends 'l are-passed' throught thee-.prong vendsof theplates: and nuts 3 attached therfetm. Referring to Fig. 3, itl will thus'he seen.. tha-tby tightening upon the nutsv the pallets will. be drawn together soas totrmly hold: the'fcases' between the pallets whereby the palletv loadi may; be readily.w handled.. `somo instances it may be..

ioundidesirable tov use' a. clamp instead of ythe rods. for holding the pallets together.

When it isfdesi-'redto inverter turn apall'et load; asshouzn' in Fig. 3,.any'suitable means such. astliey lift truck i2 provided with fork-lifting elementsv i4 housed tor raising: the pallet. load' from its supporti-ng surface 15s,. as showroin 4'.. Afterloau isN` raised 'by means of the lift. truck, end'- less; flexible cables 9: forming slings: Whichare; suapende'dioverhead: by means: of pulleys Nt from a hoist os crane It, are: placed around the entirepalletload.. as shown'. in Eig. 4f. The load is their suspended by means'r oli the slings in movable. relationrelatiweato pulleys Ml.. The hoistorcrane-is preterahly'providled? with; Wheels or rollers so that rit be. moved from. place to place.` It. may bev desirable in some instances; to.- insert the loaded? pallet into the slings by means, of the liiiftv truck;

The slings are preferably positioned betweeny the plates 4 which extend: outwardly fr'omthev pallets.. By positioning: the' slings between the plates; theplates ten'di to act as guides for the sling-sr and.` at; the' same time: prevent: the slings from slipping off thefpa'llet" load. When the pallet; load is suspended by the slings', they hoist or "l crane' tl: raisesz the loaded: pallet. about two' feet.

from the. floor.. rPhe pallet load.' is then. tilted;`

preferably by inserting the load; 'supporting fork of a'. truck. under: the loadshort. oi?.` a. verticall plane'.- Whichpasses through theI center of gravity of the load, asrshown in Eig; 5;. althoughV any other suitable means may be used for tilting the pallet load. The load is tilted until it passes the position Where its side is horizontal to the oor. After passing this position the load will slip by gravity in the slings until it is in an inverted position from that in which it was originally picked up. It will thus be observed that the pallet 2 on which the cases were originally stacked will now be the top pallet while the pallet 3 will be the bottom pallet. By this operation the cases have been turned 180 and as a result the food containers in the cases have been inverted.

While I have shown and described a simple and preferred form of carrying my invention into lpractice, it is to be understood that various Y 1. A system ,for simultaneously Iinverting'a plurality of containers, comprising `an'upper pallet;

a lower pallet, means for connecting said upper and lower pallets together and for assembling said pallets and containers into a composite unit,l

means for encircling said assembled upper and lower pallets, overhead support means foresus-` pending said encircling means in 'movable relation relative to said support means, andfrneans for tilting said assembled pallets and containers,

said last-named means being insertible -un'der said lower pallet and terminating short of a vertical plane which passes through the center oft.'

connecting-said upper and lower pallets together and Aforfassembling said pallets 'and containers into 'a composite unit, sling means for encircling said assembled upper and lower pallets, overhead support means for suspending said sling-means in movable relation relative to sai-d support means, and means for tilting said assembled pallets and containers, said last-named-means be*- ing insertible under saidlower pallet vand terminating short of a vertical plane which passes through-the center of gravity of the composite unit. 'Y

3. An apparatus for inverting an article, comprising in combination an upper and lower pallet between whichv said arti-cle is adapted to be placed, means for connecting said upper and lower pallets together and for assembling said pallets and said article into a composite unit, means for encircling and raising said palle-ts when they are connected together, overhead support means for suspending said encircling means in movable relation relative to said support means, and means for tilting said assembled pallets and article, said last-named means being insertible under said lower pallet and terminating short of a vertical plane which passesthrough the center and a vertically reciprocable lift-truck load-sup# port for tilting said assembled pallets and containers, said lift-truck load-support being insertable under said lower pallet and terminating short of a vertical plane which passes through the center of gravity of the composite unit.

5. In an apparatus for inverting an article, an upperpallet, a--lower palleta'dapted to support said article, `and'means for connecting said pallets and said article together to form a composite unit, said means comprising elongated removable members insertible through and having ends protruding beyond said pallets and means for joining the protruding ends of elongated member inserted through the upper pallet to the protruding ends of an elongated member inserted through the lower pallet.

6. In an apparatus for simultaneously inverting a plurality of containers, an upper pallet, a lower pallet, on lwhich said containers may be placed,` means for connecting said upper and lower pallets together, said comprising a plurality of spaced elongated removable'members adapted to be inserted'through said upper and lower pallets and having ends protruding beyond said pallets and Vmeans for connecting a Vre,- movable member inserted in the upper pallet to a removable member inserted in the lower pallet,

and encircling means surrounding said connect.

ed upper and lower pallets intermediate the protruding ends of said elongated removable members, said protrudingends serving as guides for said encircling means. Y

'7. In an apparatus forf simultaneously inverting a plurality of containers, an'upper pallet, a lower pallet, on which said'V containers may be placed, means for connecting said upper and lower pallets together, said means comprising a plurality of spaced elongated removable members adapted to be inserted through said ,upper and lower pallets and having ends protruding beyond said pallets andg-means connecting a removable member inserted in the upper pallet to a removable vmember inserte-dl in the lower pallet, encircling means surrounding said connected upper and lower pallets intermediate the .protruding ends of said elongated members, and means for tiltably suspending said encircling vmeans, said protruding ends serving as guidesv for said en- 5 circling means. l

HUGH D. SMITH.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of 'this patent:

`Urn'rnp STATES PATENTSV Certificate of Correction Patent No. 2,443,202. June 15, 1948.

HUGH D. SMITH It is hereby certified that errors appear in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction as follows: Column 1, line 18, for pellet read pallencolumn 4, line 12, claim 5, before elongated insert the word an; and that the said Letters Patent should be read with these corrections therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Oflice.

Signed and sealed this 31st day of August, A. D. 1948.

THOMAS F. MURPHY,

Assistant Uommz'saz'oner of Patents. 

